KUALA LUMPUR, June 15 — Late last year, patrons of Restoran Seng Lee on Jalan Batai were devastated when their neighbourhood coffeeshop closed its doors after 30 years in the business.
The three stalls which served pork noodles, char kway teow and wantan mee in the coffeeshop were an integral part of the day-to-day life in the affluent Damansara Heights suburb. Hearing news of the closure, the owner of the remaining coffeeshop on Jalan Batai offered spaces to the three stalls.
While the owners of the pork noodles and char kway teow stalls took up the offer, the ones running the wantan mee stall declined. Their rationale was simple. It would have been difficult to compete with the existing Hong Kee wantan mee stall in that coffeeshop.
Instead, they decided to strike out on their own. Once they heard of the news, some regular customers even took the trouble to drive the sisters who ran the stall around the neighbouring areas to search for a new space.
After a long hiatus, the wantan mee stall re-opened this month at their own coffeeshop in Sri Hartamas. The wantan mee stall is run by three sisters – Chan Lyn Tai, 54, Chan Lin Yeng, 53 and Chan Fong Lin, 45. The name of the place, Restoran Jie Mee, is a play of words that signify the siblings and their signature noodles.
Response from the Sri Hartamas residents and office workers in the area has been very good since the coffeeshop is the only one in the neighbourhood. The nearest place for a simple bowl of noodles would mean a trek across to Desa Sri Hartamas.
Just like before, the stall stays true to its handmade offerings. Even though they don’t make their own egg noodles, it is sourced from a trusted supplier who makes it by hand. The sisters take the trouble to make the char siew over a charcoal fire. Even the silky wantans are made on the spot with minced pork.
Look out for their crunchy green chilli pickles; the perfect match for the bouncy egg noodles. They also serve braised chicken feet with mushrooms but on the day we visited, one of the sisters was not well so they did not have any.
Regulars like to pair their curry laksa with the al dente egg noodles. Each bowl of curry laksa is topped with smooth poached chicken pieces, tofu puffs, long beans and a spoonful of shucked cockles.
You mix the deep red coloured sambal into the coconut milk broth to spice it up further.
In the coffeeshop, aside from wantan mee, you can also order pork or fish paste noodles. The stall is run by Low Youn Gien, 50, who used to run the chicken rice stall at the corner coffeeshop on Jalan Batai for about six years. She decided to support the sisters and open a stall here. In her absence, her son continues to manage the chicken rice stall at Jalan Batai. Low sells a comforting bowl of your choice of noodles topped with rough chunks of pork mince, pig’s liver and intestine. She also offers fish paste noodles.
Joining the family-run coffeeshop is another sister, Chan Foong Tai, 56 who takes care of the drinks.
Aside from the usual coffee and tea, they also offer fresh juices. Try their refreshing calamansi and sour plum drink. The slightly sourish drink is the perfect heat buster. In addition, they also offer kaya toast and steamed bread using the old fashioned Bengali bread. For those looking for a healthier alternative, they also sell wholemeal toast.
While waiting to open their own place, the sisters sold Chinese New Year cookies and took a short break back at their hometown in Perak. Prior to the closure of Restoran Seng Lee, they had diligently collected the contact numbers of all their regular customers.
After they opened, their young niece, Lee Jia Yee, 14, helped to spread the message of their return via SMS. It’s early days but in the future, the sisters also hope to add more stalls selling chicken rice and pan mee to complement their offerings.
